Jesus, Our Redeemer

Jesus is the image and the pattern of who we are. Jesus is our mirror, the true reflection of who we are as born again believers. Acts 17:28 says that "in Him we live and move and have our being." Therefore it is imperative that we know who He is. Jesus is our Redeemer, the one who enables us to return to the God of creation. Therefore we can never know who we are without Jesus living on the inside of us in the person of the Holy Spirit. In every man there is a God-shaped vacuum, a void that is reserved only for God. Only He can fill that void in our lives. Nothing is able to satisfy the longing soul except for the presence of the true and the living God. Some of us have tried many things, but to no avail. Come to know Jesus today as your personal Savior and Lord. If you are in the place in your life where you are saying, yes I wanna know Jesus. I've tried to fill that void with many things, but to no avail. Or you may be  a person that says, Minister Novice, I am saved but I have lost something along the way because of the pressures and the circumstances of life. You are a person that is a backslider and God is married to the backslider. A true backslider is one who really loves the Lord because you will never turn your back on God.  A true backslider will always come back. Then again, Jesus may be the Savior and Lord of your life, but you do not have a church home. The Bible says that we should not forsake the assembling of ourselves together. You do need a pastor that will watch over and pray for your soul. Don't let the devil trick you any longer. There is a Hell to shun and there is a Heaven to gain. If you can identify with any of these appeals, please inbox me and with the help of the Holy Spirit, I will assist you.  God bless you and I am looking forward to haring from you! Remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus.

No Sad Stories/Our Help Comes from the Lord

We do not make light of troubles and calamities. We NEVER minimize anything that people have to go through because the hurts, pains, uncertainties, difficulties, unfavorable, uninvited and unwelcomed circumstances of life (that we all experience) are real. They hurt! However, we must not dwell on and confess our pains. Instead, as the heirs of promise, we confess the promises of God.

Even as we can appreciate that our problems are real, we also know that there is a duality of existence, that which is seen and that which is unseen. The things that are seen are temporary; therefore, they are subject to change. The things that are unseen are eternal and this is where speaking what is written in the Word of God comes in to action. Whose report will we believe and speak? We shall believe and we shall speak the report of the Lord!

The report of the Lord says that we are healed, healthy, made whole and complete in all the will of God for our lives. The report of the Lord says that He will perfect everything that concerns us. The report of the lord says that when we have done all to stand, that we must stand!

Therefore, we must teach our hearts to believe by training our mouths to speak the Word of God. Thus, when those difficult times come around and we do not know what to say, out of the wellsprings of our hearts
will come forth words of light, life and love. Out of the abundance of our hearts, our mouths will speak.

Through speaking the promises of God instead of speaking our problems, in magnifying the bigness of our God instead of magnifying the bigness of our problems, we come to realize that the joy of the Lord is our strength and that joy is an inside job.

The joy of the Lord is an inner contentment that is independent of external circumstances. It produces in us strength and fortitude, which is a conquering attitude. In other words, when not all seems to be well, all is well. When it seems like all the devil is breaking loose in our lives, because we have the joy of the Lord, we can still say that all
is well. If we truly endeavor to remain in the place of grace, which is the place by Jesus, we can always portray that there are no sad stories in our lives, because our help comes from the Lord.

(2 Timothy 4:4),
"And they turn their ears from the truth, and shall be turned into a fable. "
The word fable here in the Greek means a sad story.

*Do not turn from the truth of God's Word and allow your problems to transform your life into a sad story.*

Always remember that as children of the Most High God, we never fight for the victory. We always fight from a position and a posture of victory, because we win. Remember the message of the cross. It is not a message of death and defeat. It is actually a message of how God takes the negatives and transforms them into positives. JESUS GOT UP! Therefore, we can always get back up from every situation in life. We can lose everything, but because we have Jesus, we have enough to start all over again. Jesus has already obtained the victory for us. Therefore, we win!

Allow your lives to be governed by faith in God through Christ. When situations arise, remember that there is another King. His name is Jesus and where the word of the King is, there is power. The testimony of God has already been established. Settle it in your hearts. Believe that you can be who God says you can be. You can do what God says you can do. You can also have what God says you can have. Therefore, never allow circumstances, issues and problems to transform your life into a sad story. Never give up. Never give in. Keep looking up to see that your help comes from the Lord.

Faith Considers Him/He Did it for Me

Praise the Lord, everybody! This is Minister Novice. Apostle Holcomb preached a message this week entitled, Faith Considers Him. The subtitle is "He Did it for Me". The message text is found in Hebrews 12:1-3.

The word consider has a 7 fold meaning.

1. Ponder

2. Pay attention to

3. Think about

4. Look at

5. See

6. Say who He is

7. Obey what He says

As we are looking unto Jesus, the Author and the Finisher of our faith, God will develop our faith and trust in Him. It is of the essence that we begin and end with Jesus and allowing Him to be everything in between. We learned that there are four operations of faith as follows:

1. Saving Faith is the faith that we are saved by.

2. Sufficient Faith is the faith that we live by. Faith receives what grace gives.

3. Strong Faith is being able to believe God on behalf of others.

4. The Spirit's Faith is Sovereign Faith that God releases on our behalf.

We learned to consider the Lord in every aspect of life. We must trust in the truthfulness of God's Word, which He places above His name. As we step out of the boat of security, we step out on the water of God's Word without doubt, fear and unbelief. Doubt questions the veracity of God's integrity and fidelity. As always, please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus.

The Significance of Baptism

Praise the Lord everybody! This is Minister Novice. The message that Apostle Holcomb preached in our 10:30 worship service on Sunday is entitled, "The Significance of Baptism." The scripture text is found in Mark 16:17-20. Along with Holy Communion, Baby Dedication, and The Right Hand of Fellowship, Water Baptism is one of the ordinances and rights of the church of the living God. Romans 10:9-10, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God raised him from the dead, thou shall be saved. For with the heart, man believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." These verses of scripture convey the heart of God concerning salvation. In thus saying, water baptism is not essential to salvation. However, it is an act of obedience. It is sequential to accepting Jesus as personal Savior and Lord. We participate in the church ordinance of water baptism to:

1. Identify with Christ

2. Receive the validation of the Spirit

3. Demonstrate the affirmation of the Father

The Greek word for baptism is (baptize). It means to dip into, emerge and submerge. When one is emerged under the water, it signifies the death and burial of Jesus. Moreover, when we are brought up from the water, it demonstrates the resurrection of the Lord. In so doing, our message to the world is that the old man is buried and that we rise in the newness of life. We are demonstrating outwardly an inward grace that has taken place in our hearts. Therefore, we do not receive water baptism to obtain salvation. We actually partake of water baptism because we are already saved. According to the scriptures, we are fulfilling all righteousness. In essence, we are declaring to the world that we are right with God!

Matthew 3:15-17, "And Jesus answering said unto him, suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." As always, remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus! God bless you.

 

 

 

 

 

The Truth VS Facts

Truth can be described as the true state of a certain matter. It is what a person has come to believe. It also answers the questions of what is really happening. The Bible is the Truth. It is not based on some thing. Moreover, it is based on the Truth, which is the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. John 4:16, "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

Fact is basically something that exists, or is present in reality. Hence, these are things that can be seen visually. These are the things that can be verified according to man's standard of authentication. Facts do not require belief. Rather these are more or less the things that can be observed empirically, or by the senses. Therefore, facts can be seen and heard, as well as proven by the other senses. I am reminded of the difference between ethics and laws. Laws are rules of conduct or procedure recognized by a community as binding or enforceable by authority. Ethics deals with a system of moral standards or principles that will be carried out even in the absence of of authority. My point is that ethics are higher than laws. Ethics require a person to have a certain belief system. The same is true with the truth and facts. Yes, the Bible is factual. Moreover, the Bible is the Truth. It is the book about the Truth from Genesis to Revelations. It is an account of someone, not some thing. It is a Him book, speaking of the King, the Lord Jesus Christ. In essence, the Truth is higher than facts. For example, a person has a sickness. This is factual. However, the Truth has the higher and final authority. According to Isaiah 53:5, Jesus was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed! A person may be experiencing lack in finances. This is factual. the truth of the matter is that God makes all grace abound towards us that we have all sufficiency in all things. He also supplies all our needs according to his riches in glory by, in and through Christ Jesus. It does not stop there because not only does he supply all our needs, but he supplies them exceedingly and abundantly above all that we can ask or think according to the power that works in us. This power is the blessed ministry and help of the Holy Spirit. Facts are facts and we do not deny them. However, as children of the King we live by the higher and final authority of the word of God.

The Blessedness of Happiness: Lost, Precious and Loved

 

Praise the Lord, everybody! The message that Apostle Holcomb preached this Sunday, 17 October 2010 at our 10:30 worship service is in the series, The Blessedness of Happiness. It is entitled, Lost, Precious and Loved. (Matthew 5:1-4) is the scripture text.

"And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted." Last week we spoke about being poor in spirit, which equates to being rich toward God, realizing that we all need Jesus. When we are rich toward God, we see people the way God sees them as we view the world through the dove eyes of the Father. This enables us to look beyond the faults of others as we see and address the needs of those who are less fortunate. The emphasis today is on verse 4, "blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted." The Greek word for mourn is pentheo. It carries the connotation of lamenting, which is crying with God. There are times of rejoicing in our lives and there are times when we will mourn. It is of the essence that we are balanced individuals. (Romans 12:15) says, "Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep." There will be times that we experience the lost of loved ones and things that we hold dear to our hearts. It is important that we never suppress emotions that need to be expressed because in doing so, it could lead to depression. God gave us emotions and they serve needed purposes. Our emotions function as outlets and safety valves because we have an innate need to respond to given situations. The Bible speaks to us about occasions when even Jesus wept. Therefore, we realize that God cries with us. Even as we cry over the lost of loved ones that have passed on, we must also cry over loved ones that are lost. Souls are important and precious in the sight of God. He will always leave the 99, to go after one lost soul. The questions become, why are souls so important to God? What makes a soul valuable to God? What is a soul worth? The Bible teaches that our souls are worth more than the gain of the whole world. Our souls are of much value because they are desirable and they are durable. God desires our souls and so does satan. In (Luke 22:31), Jesus said to Peter, "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat." 
Our souls are also durable which means that they are eternal. We will exist eternally somewhere. We must not allow the devil to fool us by causing us to believe a lie. There are consequences associated with our decisions in this life. The devil is going to hell and he desires to take as many of us with him as he can. Please realize that there is a Heaven to gain and there is a hell to shun. In essence, Heaven is a real place and hell is a real place. We do not come back and get to try again as something different. We do not come back! The truth is that we all have an appointment with death. The question becomes, where will we spend eternity? God loves us and He has made provisions for us by giving His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. If we accept His Son, we receive everlasting life. Every sheep needs a shepherd. Every sinner needs a Savior and every soul needs the Sovereign God. Remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus!

 

The Metamorphosis of the Mind: Change Into Something Different

Praise the Lord everybody! This is Minister Novice. The message that Apostle Holcomb preached this Sunday is entitled The Metamorphosis of the Mind: "Change and Become Something Different." The scripture text is found in Romans 12:1-3. Our mantra for this year is 2010, We're in. We are getting into what we're into. It is written in Acts 17:28, "For in Him we live and move and have our being." This means that our dependency is not on the world. Our dependency is on the Lord, the Kingdom of our God and the Power of His Christ which is the blessed ministry of the Holy Spirit. Also in Acts: 1-7, the scriptures tell us of how the people of that day were making an impact on society. They turned the world in a different direction. It was actually the right direction. As they did, so must we declare and proclaim with our lives that there is another King, one Jesus. In this particular message, we are being taught in reference to having the Kingdom mindset.

The question becomes, how can we change ourselves into something different? We cannot. Only God can change a man and transform him into a new creature. The Greek word for transform is (metamorphoo). It means to become something different. The example given is that of a caterpillar transforming into a butterfly. The dimensions and altitudes of the butterfly are different from that of the caterpillar. Once the transformation has taken place, it can never return to what it previously was. So it is with us, once we have accepted Jesus as our personal Savior and Lord. Bishop also talked about the word, repent. He has been teaching us God's Theology of "Re." The Greek word for repent is (metanoia). It means to modify or change the mind by association. Repentance carries the connotation of changing the mind by renewing the mind to the mind of Christ. In essence, when we repent, we turn from our old lives and turn to Jesus. He makes us into another vessel. The Bible teaches that if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away and all things become new. Be not conformed to the world or the world's way of thinking and living. But be transformed by the renewing of your mind. In essence, do not allow yourself to be modeled, molded and fashioned into the pattern of the world's way of doing things. We must repent and change according to the likeness of God. Remember that in order to repent, we must think differently about sin. We must feel differently about sin. We must also choose to live differently as a direct result of the Holy Spirit's conviction that Jesus is Lord and King. Remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain
in the place by Jesus.

 

From the message "The Bill of Rights of the Christian Faith"

 

The Manacarta

 

Repentance

1. Regeneration 6. Reformation
   
2. Redemption 7. Revived
   
3. Reconciliation 8. Reproved
   
4. Rejoice 9. Reasonable
   
5. Restoration 10. Remember
   

   
    

   Repentance begins with regeneration. We become regened because of redemption. We have been bought with a price by the finished work of Calvary through our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. He brought us back and reconciled us to the favor, which is the grace of God. We can therefore rejoice! This is good news!
   

   God has restored us by fixing us. He has reformed us by changing and transforming us into a better state. God locates us where we are, but He doesn't leave us the way He finds us. He has revived us by bringing us back to life, back to the high point with Him.
   

God rebukes those that He loves. Therefore we should never despise the reproving of the Lord. Because of all that was previously stated, it is only reasonable that we would serve Him. It is only the appropriate, respectable and proper response that we would always remember the Lord as we continue in communion with Him. Therefore we must repent from what has kept us from considering Jesus.

Repent: Living above the Common

Praise the Lord everybody. The message that Apostle Holcomb preached this week is entitled, "Repent: Living above the Common." This is living above the ordinary, the familiar and the normal. The message text is found in (Matthew 3:1, 2) and (Matthew 4:17). We must have the Kingdom message, the Kingdom mindset and the Kingdom ministry. In other words, it's all about Jesus. He is the message, the mindset, the ministry and the model of the Kingdom of God. It's all about Him! As stated in the previous scriptures, John the Baptist and Jesus' message was repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. "At hand" is a Hebraism which means that His help is available to us. We have right of entry to another dimension of help because we have access to God's resources. This is His support, His supply and His surplus. It is in Him that we live, move and have our being. This means that our dependence is not on the kingdom of this world. Our dependence is on the Lord, the Kingdom of our God and the Power of His Christ, which is the help and the ministry of the Holy Spirit. There is another King! Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand! The Greek word for repentance is (metanoia) which means to modify or change the mind by association. It carries the connotation of changing the mind by renewing the mind to the mind of Christ, which is the ideology of Christ. The precondition of repentance is brokenness. In essence we must feel differently about sin. We must think differently about sin. We must also choose to live differently as a direct result of the Holy Spirit's conviction that Jesus is Lord and King. As children of the Most High God, we have dual citizenship. In the United States we are under a democracy. We are also citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven which is a Theocracy. We must begin to access our Kingdom mindset and think about things the way God thinks about them. It is essential that we discontinue the worldly mindsets as it pertains to our lives and to the church of the Living God. Remember when God asked Adam, Who told you that? In other words, where did you get that from? Remember that God's ways are not our ways. His thoughts are not our thoughts. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the Heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." (Isaiah 55:8, 9) We must get the Counsel of God's understanding concerning every situation. We then yield and submit to God's point of view and we take God's position in every matter. Our philosophies must be married to God's Theology. Praise the Lord! As always, please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus! God bless you and have a wonderfully blessed day!

There Is Another King: The Kingdom Message

 

Praise the Lord, Everybody! This is Minister Novice. The message that Apostle Holcomb preached this week is entitled, "There Is Another King: The Kingdom message." The scripture text is found in Acts 17:27, Acts 17:1-7. The Kingdom message is that it's all about Him, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. He is our soon coming and life changing King. Unless we allow our lives to be ruled and governed by Jesus Christ, there will always be emptiness on the inside that only God can fill. On the altar of our hearts, there will continually be the inscription to an unknown God whom we worship ignorantly. We have come to learn that Jesus is in every book of the Bible and even so, He is also in the book of our lives. The Bible is HIM book. It is the book about Him! In the Bible, You will find Jesus from Genesis to Revelations. He came in the volume of the book that is written of Him. Jesus is the answer to every situation that we may encounter. Regardless of what you may go through, remember that there is another King and His name is Jesus. He has the name that is higher than any other name. His name is higher than any sickness or any problem that we may face. At the name of Jesus every knee must bow and every tongue will confess to the glory of God the Father that He is Lord. It is in Him that we live and move and have our being. Indicating, that we are not dependent on the world's system; however our dependence is on the Lord, the Kingdom of our God and the Power of His Christ, which is the ministry of the Holy Spirit. God is our source and everything else is a resource. In the book of Philippians, Jesus is the God that supplies all our needs according to His riches in Glory. My encouragement, as always, is that you will remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus.

The Subject of Ignorance

Praise the Lord everybody. This is Minister Novice. The message that Apostle Holcomb preached this week is entitled, "The Subject of Ignorance." The scripture text is found in 1 Corinthians 14:38-40. We, the Body of Christ, the family of God at the Christian House of Prayer are still merismosing the matter of speaking in tongues. Speaking in tongues is supplication on our part, which is having a passion for what God wants. However it is intercession on the Spirit's part because it is He who takes hold together with us that which is opposite to and antagonistic towards us. He leads and directs us in what we should say when we pray to God. Paul concludes in 1 Corinthians 14 what he was teaching in the previous chapters. He expresses that after all that has been taught; if an individual still wants to be ignorant, allow him to remain ignorant. Ignorance is a commentary on what we don't know. It deals with not knowing the difference or not acknowledging the different reasons for being ignorant. We covered three primary reasons for ignorance. Number 1 is unlearned ignorance which bespeaks of being incapable of comprehending truth or knowledge because of inexperience or immaturity. Number 2 is unaware ignorance that demonstrates a lack of knowledge which could be the result of not hearing. We realize that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. In other words, it must be preached! In Acts 19:1-7, Paul came across some disciples and he asked them if they had received the Holy Ghost since they were saved. The disciples answered saying that they had not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. This is an example of unaware ignorance. Number 3 is unacknowledged ignorance, which to me is the most dangerous of the 3. Unacknowledged ignorance says that I have heard. I comprehend what you are saying, but I choose to ignore it and remain in a state of stubbornness. We also discussed 2 terms concerning our attitudes toward the Holy Spirit. Persona grata; this is the total acceptance of the 3rd person who is the ambassador of the God head. The very antithesis is persona non grata which means that we do not accept, we do not welcome, and we do not recognize, appreciate or celebrate the Holy Spirit as Heaven's agent on the earth. In John 20:22, Jesus said unto His disciples, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost." Why did He say this knowing that the Holy Spirit had not yet come? Why would Jesus have to tell saved people, disciples to receive the Holy Spirit? I believe Jesus knew that some of us would not do it and some us still do not receive the Holy Spirit's ministry. There are some people who want Jesus but do not want the Holy Spirit. Yet there are others who want the Holy Spirit without the tongues. We cannot and should not attempt to departmentalize God. The day of Pentecost is when the Holy Spirit came with His ministry. We do not have to tarry for him because He is here! The book of Acts is a continuous narrative and we are still living in the book of Acts today, which is the works or the acts of the Holy Spirit. The question then becomes, have you received the Holy Spirit since you've been saved? As always, please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus! God bless you!

The Order of Tongues: Tongues in Order

 

Praise the Lord everybody! This is Minister Novice. The title of the message this week is "The Order of Tongues" or tongues in Order. The scripture text is 1 Corinthians 14:18. Apostle Holcomb proceeded to teach the people of God in reference to the 2 operations of tongues. We were strongly encouraged to continue to study chapters 12-14 of 1 Corinthians in our private devotion with the Lord. The question that was posed according to 1 Corinthians 14:23, is should we as a church pray in cooperate tongues publicly or in a church setting. We acknowledge that God is not the author of confusion, but He is the author of peace. First of all, we have discussed that there are two operations of tongues. Number 1 is The Gift of Tongues. This is God speaking to man through man by the Holy Spirit with the companion gift of Interpretation of Tongues. In this manifestation, God is giving a message to the church. God is speaking, therefore we need an interpreter. Secondly, there is the operation of Praying in Tongues, which is also called praying in our Spiritual prayer language or praying in the spirit. This is the manifestation of being baptized in the Holy Ghost with the initial evidence of speaking in tongues. When we pray in tongues, we are speaking to God, spirit to spirit. Please remember that we are spirits. We live inside of physical bodies and we possess a soul. In this operation of tongues, there is no need for interpretation because God understands all languages. According to 1 Corinthians 14:2, "For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue, speaketh not unto man but unto God for no man understands him; how be it in the spirit he speaks mysteries. Therefore as we continue to study and rightfully divide the Word of Truth, we come to realize that in 1 Corinthians 14:23, Paul was speaking about the Gift of tongues. This was not a reference to our spiritual prayer language. Accordingly, to answer the question, "Should we pray in cooperate tongues publicly?" The answer is yes! It is a beautiful experience as the whole church comes together and blesses the Lord in many different languages. We are ambassadors of Christ and of Heaven. Therefore when we pray in tongues, we identify who we are, where we're from, who we support and who we represent. We have been given a charge to pray in tongues more! As always, please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus.

Tongues Accessible to the Supernatural: Why Tongues and Controlled Tongues

 

Praise the Lord! Hallelujah! Glory to God! This is Minister Novice. We, the Body of Christ, the family of God at the Christian House Prayer have been tapping into the pneumanticos, which is the realm of the Spirit. Apostle Holcomb is continuing to teach in the area of Pneumatology, the study of the Spirit. The message this week is Tongues: Accessible to the Supernatural: Why Tongues and Controlled Tongues. The scripture text is found in 1 Corinthians 14:1, 2. Verse 2 says, "For He that speaketh in an unknown tongue, speaketh not unto man but unto God for no man understands him, howbeit in the Spirit, he speaks mysteries." Divine mysteries are divine secrets that the Father reveals to us when we pray in the Holy Ghost. When we communicate with God in our Heavenly language, we can't mess up the prayer and the devil can't interrupt it. We don't know what we are saying but we know what we are doing. There are times when we know that we need to pray, but we don't know how to pray about a particular situation. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 14:15, "I will pray in the Spirit and I will pray with the understanding also…" Praying in tongues transcends our own limited thinking. When we pray in the Holy Ghost, we build ourselves up on our most holy faith as we are speaking directly to God. Tongues, glossa, is a Spiritual prayer language that God has given specifically to the individual. We should pray in our Spiritual language on a daily basis. Praying in tongues positions and causes us to be accessible to the supernatural. We serve the Living God and it is in Him that we live and move and have our being. As we continue to operate in the supernatural realm, we should expect signs, wonders and miracles to take place in our lives on a daily basis. We have an expectation of the demonstration of the Holy Spirit, anticipating the inevitable, supernatural intervention of God. We expect Him to move on our behalf and on the behalf of others. Even as we realize that speaking in tongues is the initial evident sign that we have received the baptism of the Holy Ghost, it should also be a way of life for the child of God. We are ambassadors of Christ, ambassadors of Heaven. Therefore, as citizens of Heaven, we are Spiritual beings having human encounters and human experiences. It is only natural that we speak in our native Heavenly tongue. As always, please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus!

 

Your Independence Day: Receive the Spirit’s Power

 

The message that Apostle Holcomb preached this week is entitled, "Your Independence Day: Receive the Spirit's Power." The scripture text is John 20:22. Jesus breathed on His disciples and said, Receive ye the Holy Ghost. The Godhead is the ministry of representation. Thus when we are saved, it is the Holy Spirit who brings us to Jesus. No man can come to Jesus except he is drawn by the Holy Spirit. Likewise after we have accepted Jesus as personal Savior and Lord, it is He who brings us into contact with the Holy Spirit's ministry. If you are a child of the Most High, you need to receive the power of God, which is the Baptism in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. This supernatural endowment from God gives us power over Satan, sin and self. The Holy Spirit gives us the ability and the strength to quit habits, to release ungodly relationships, to walk right, to talk right, and to live right; to live our lives pleasing and acceptable unto the Father. The question then becomes according to Acts 19:1-6, "Have you received the Holy Ghost since you believed?" This word since is interesting to me because it can carry a couple of connotations. Have you received the Holy Ghost because or in view of the fact that you are saved? Likewise, have you received the Holy Spirit from the time when or after you were saved? Both are indicators that the Holy Spirit's ministry is not optional, but it is necessary for the power of God from on high to flow in and through us. Acts 10:38 says that "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with Him." Once again, this shows the ministry of representation in progress. Once we have received the Spirit's baptism, we can go about doing good, as Jesus did because God is with us. If you need to accept Jesus as personal Savior and Lord, please contact me. Likewise, if you are saved, and you are void of power; you truly love God but there are some things that you haven't been able to let go of; you need the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in tongues. You need the power of God! Allow Jesus to take you into another dimension of who He is; Savior, Shepherd and Sovereign King! Acts 1:8 says that you shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. And as always, please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus.

Honey I Blessed the Kids

 

Praise the Lord everybody! This week Apostle Holcomb preached a message in honor of Father's Day, entitled, "Honey I Blessed the Kids." The scripture text is found in Hebrews 6:20, 21. We learned that a man must be a model, mentor and motivator for his children. He must be responsible and accountable as he follows the example given to us in Jesus Christ. The word husband means house band man. The man is the person whom God has ordained to keep the house bound together. When the man is out of place, the wife is misplaced and the children are displaced. This is because at some point God has been replaced. When the man is in his proper position, he operates under the authority and he is responsible to God. The man must be in the position to declare the blessings of the Lord upon his family. When he has the proper establishment, he will never crack under pressure. His foundation is sure. The man will continue to hold the government of his family upon his shoulders as he rests in the Kingdom authority of our great and mighty God. Please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus. God bless you!

Learning Opportunities

 

Praise the Lord, everybody. This is Minister Novice. This week our Apostle, Bishop Nate Holcomb preached a message entitled, Learning Both: How to Live With and How to Live Without. The subtitle is Learning Opportunities. The scripture text is found in Philippians 4:10. The word opportunity is defined as the best time for something. We learned that every storm and situation in life is an opportunity to praise the Lord. The presence of controversy is not the time to quit God. Moreover, it is the opportune occasion to learn more about our loving, caring and sharing Heavenly Father. In verse 11, Paul says that he has learned to be content in whatever state he finds himself in. Contentment is a restful, peaceful state of mind that is undisturbed by external circumstances. It is an unwavering and uncomplaining acceptance of one's own lot, realizing that the joy of the Lord is our strength. The joy of the Lord is a deep sense of inner well being that's independent of whatever may be going on in our lives. It produces in us strength and fortitude which is a conquering attitude. As the people of God, we must learn that our contentment is not in some thing, rather it is in someone. Realizing this, when we go through storms and valleys, we will never lose our trust, reliance, confidence nor our faith in God. God must have the preeminence in our lives. When this is of such, we can tremble in our boots and never waver in faith because we have faith in God embedded in our hearts. And as always, please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus!

Jesus Christ, Better Life

 

Praise the Lord everybody! This is Minister Novice. The message that our Apostle, Bishop Nate Holcomb preached this week is entitled, "Jesus Christ, Better Life." We were taught in reference to the pulpit ministry of Jesus Christ and how that every message that comes from the pulpit should always end with Jesus. We must realize that whatever the devil brings, Jesus always comes and does better. The purpose of the pulpit is to pull us out of the pits of our lives and to inspire us to step out to fulfill our purposes in life. Additionally, the purpose of the preacher in the pulpit is to stand up and bring the book. He or she is to open the book of the law, the Bible and find the place where it is written of Him. It is written in the book of Nehemiah 8:4-6, "And Ezra, the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood which they had made for the purpose…….And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, and when he opened it all the people stood up. And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands. They bowed their heads and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

In whatever situation that you may encounter in life, always remember to get God's prospective from the pulpit. The pulpit is where humanity meets divinity, where man meets God, and it is where the super comes in contact with the natural in our lives. We are admonished in 2 Chronicles 20:20 to "Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe His prophets, so shall ye prosper." Hermeneutically speaking, when you Amen God, God Amens you; and when you Amen His preacher, the preacher pushes you to step out and do better, to live better, to have better, and to be better. In all things, bear in mind these words, "The Lord is my helper. I will not fear." And please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus.

Jesus Christ in Charge

Praise the Lord everybody! This is Minister Novice. The message that our Apostle, bishop Holcomb preached this week is entitled, "Jesus Christ in Charge." The question becomes, is He in charge of our lives? The scripture reference is found in Colossians 1:12-19. Verse 18 says that in all things He has the pre eminence. When we say that Jesus is Lord, we are saying that He has the pre eminence. He is in charge of our lives. Therefore Jesus is our Master who rules us, our Owner who owns us and He is our Lord who directs and controls us. We have been bought with a price; by the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

Bishop Holcomb also taught us that living an effective life for the Kingdom is living like Jesus is in charge. We must be a Triple A church, being triple A people. We must have an appreciation for the Word of God which entails being pleased with hearing god's Word preached, speaking what we hear, speaking the same thing(homologeo) that there would no divisions among us; and having a devotion as we daily open the Bible and read God's Word. We must have affection towards the House of God. I was glad when they said unto me; come let us go into the House of the Lord. We must have an aspiration for suffering persecution for the cause of God. Always recognize that Jesus is not to be on our priority lists. He has the pre eminence and therefore He's on a page all by Himself.

Your Help Comes From the Lord!

 

This week I am compelled to encourage your hearts to continue to trust in, lean on, rely on and have confidence in God at all times; remembering that He is the same God in the night as He is in the light. In this world, we will experience tribulations, which are three times the trouble, but be of cheer because Jesus has overcome the world. The rains will descend, the floods will come and the winds will beat upon all of our houses; but it's the house that's built upon the rock and the revelation of who Jesus is that will stand. I'm also reminded of a song that goes like this…….I've had some bad days. I've had some hills to climb. I've had some weary days and I've had some lonely nights. These are all evil tidings, a lot of bad news. But the songwriter didn't leave us there. He came back and gave us the good news. He said, but when I look around and I think things over, all of my good days outweigh my bad days, so I won't complain. I'll say thank you Lord and I won't complain. My prayer is that the Lord will perfect everything that concerns you today and that you will stand perfect and complete in all the will of God for your lives. Remember that the joy of the Lord is your strength. The joy of the Lord is an inner contentment that's independent of external circumstances. It produces in us strength and fortitude which is a conquering attitude. That inner contentment is an uncompromising acceptance of one's lot as we realize that God is still God in the good times and in the times if inquiry. We must come to a place where we can travel through our passages of pain with peace because we do not pursue God's prosperity, but we seek His presence and His person. God bless you and realize that when we close our hands, God opens His. Whatever you situation may be today, yes God can. Yes God will. But if not, He's still God. Don't give up. Don't give in. But keep looking up to see that your help comes from the Lord. Please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus.

A Fresh Dedication to Prayer

 

Praise the Lord everybody! This is Minister Novice. The message that our Apostle, Bishop Holcomb preached this week is entitled, "A Fresh Dedication to Prayer." He taught us that an effective Christian is one who communicates with God. The Bible tells us that the earnest, heartfelt, continued prayer of the righteous makes tremendous power available, dynamic it's working. However, a Christian who does not pray is in consequence dead, nuted, impotent, void, and powerless. If we are to be effective in prayer, we must learn God's way of communicating. We must discover what the Word of the Lord says and rehearse God's heart back to Him in prayer. It is not beneficial for us to go before the Father simply speaking what is on our minds. This is called straight line praying, praying amiss, or using vain repetitions; in essence hitting and missing. Here is my prayer for you all. Heavenly Father, I take with me words, Your Word and I turn to You in prayer. I pray that You will perfect that which concerns Your people. I always labor fervently in prayer that we may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God for our lives. I thank You that You watch over Your Word to perform it; and I put You in remembrance and plead together with You. I do believe that You will contend with those that contend with us and that You will save, heal, deliver, preserve, and make whole and complete. May the God of peace Himself, sanctify you wholly and may your spirit, soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. For Him, we live, we move and we have our being. In Jesus' name, Amen and amen. Please remember to remain in the place of grace. Remain in the place by Jesus.

Who is He to You, Your Holy Man of God?

 

Praise the Lord everybody. This is Minister Novice. In our church, The Christian House of Prayer, we are having a month long celebration to our Holy Man of God, our Apostle, Bishop Nathaniel Holcomb, for 30 years of successful ministry. This week Pastor Valerie preached the Word and the title of the message was, "Who is He to You, Your Holy Man of God?" The scripture reference was 2Kings 4: 8, 9. The account says that Elisha was passing through Shunem and the Shunemite woman said unto her husband, "I perceive that this is a holy man of God which passes by us continually." The story goes on to tell how that they honored and made provisions in their hearts, their lives and in their home for the man of God and how that they were blessed because of it. My personal testimony is that 16 years ago, I came to the Christian House of Prayer and when I heard Bishop Holcomb preach, I remember seeing a man that I had never seen before. I saw Jesus as He was being re-presented with character and integrity. I realized that Bishop Holcomb was a Holy Man of God and that he was the voice of God for my life. Over the years, he has continued to bring me my faith as he passes by continually with the Word of God. We realize that we should give honor to whom honor is due and beyond a shadow of any doubt, my husband and I love our Man of God. We honor him with our faithfulness, service and our gifts of love. We say, "Long live our Apostle, Bishop Nate Holcomb"!